Anatomy of a chimney

A chimney, simply put, is a vertical tube designed to draw combustion products (smoke and gasses) from an appliance like a wood stove or fireplace to the atmosphere outside the house. Here are the basic parts:

Questions To Ask A Chimney Sweep Before You Hire

What do you need to ask before you hire a chimney sweep. What are the qualifications of the chimney sweep? What happens if something goes wrong - Insurance? Is the chimney sweep properly trained…how do you know?

In a survey conducted by the Stove Industry Alliance, wood burning stove retailers reported that at least 36% of homeowners supply at least half of their wood themselves. With the majority of the remaining wood sourced from a local garage or wood retailer within 5 miles of an owner’s home, or delivered from a logs/solid fuel merchant within a delivery catchment area of approx. 50 miles, environmentally-aware owners are successfully minimising the carbon footprint of their stoves.

In checking your chimney, a chimney professional can check all of the visible components of the chimney for damage, needed maintenance, and fire safety. A chimney professional is trained to look for dangerous or questionable conditions that a homeowner could easily miss.